CJ if they dont give two hoots, then why are you complaining for them? I assume that you see it as a problem. To me its just basic courtesy to speak the language of the country that you are expecting to take you in. I'd expect the same of myself if I moved to a non-english speaking country and wanted to become a citizen there.

CG, I'm not "complaining for them".

Rather, I simply drew attention to the naked racism in Bazz's post about his fellow commuters. That his racism has been repeated by - indeed, expanded upon - by other Hanson sympathisers serves my purpose well.

Clearly, Hanson's constituency is situated firmly in the racist Australian underbelly that most people would rather pretend no longer exists.

"Hansons constituency is located in the racist Australian underbelly".

This implies that racism is only a white problem. Racism exists in every race in this country. That hostility between the races is a major threat to peace in Australia as it is and has been everywhere else in the world. Intregration, the willingness to let your children marry with other races is the ultimate test of non racism. A lot of this kind of racism is coming more from races other than the whites within Australia.

When these races talk of multiculturalism; that is exactly what they mean. Multi races living forever separate through non intermarriage.
How much more racist can you get than that.

CJ Morgan said: "If you wanted to draw a parallel, it would be between the invasion of Australia by the "Anglo-Celtic" forebears whom you celebrate, and their massacres of Aboriginal people and ongoing expropriation of Aboriginal lands."

Ah, the old the guilt card. Multiculturalists use this often; they tell Australians that their European forefathers colonised Australia and displaced the Aboriginal population, so what is wrong with large, ethno-centric migrant groups doing the same to us? In other words, they tell Australians that in order to make up for past guilt, Australians must meekly accept resurrected colonialism.

But tell me, why is it automatically 'racist' for Australians to oppose the immigration-driven alteration of their country’s social, cultural and economic fabric? What is so wrong with Australia's founding majority wanting to sustain their country's predominately European national character? After all, their '"Anglo-Celtic" forebears' created and built one of the world's most stable, free and prosperous nations. A legacy worth preserving, in my humble opinion.

As for immigration from Asia and elsewhere, infusions of diversity enrich a national culture, but the question of scale is crucial. As long as migrant communities assimilate into the mainstream national culture, there is no problem. However, there is a major problem when the people flow resembles a new wave of colonisation. The growing presence of non-assimilating diasporic groups in our midst does not bode well for social cohesion.

sharkfin,

Racism is a problem in many communities, however just because others do it doesn't mean you should.

Country Gal, I would support your call more if I haven't seen first hand what anglo-saxons (Australian, US and Brits) tend to do in foreign countries themselves. That is, they set up enclaves where they have their own language signage, have difficulty learning the local language and prefer to talk with others of their "type" in their own language, in public no less.

James I appreciate your point, and my opinion extends to those people as well. If you are going to move to a new county permanently (ie take up citizenship), then the very least you can do is get a good handle on the language. I extend that to english-speaking peoples as much as anyone else. I dont have such a problem where the move is a temporary one only, and I extend that to foreigners living in Australia. Just dont expect to be refered as Australian if you dont make this effort (and again for english-speaking people moving to foreign countries).